Oye Demands Probe into NNPC’s ₦11.2trn Federation Receivables

BY FRONTLINE REPORTERS

The Chairman of the Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics (AERE), Dele Oye, has called for an independent investigation into the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s (NNPC) ₦11.201 trillion receivables from the Federation, demanding full disclosure of the transactions and obligations behind the outstanding balance.

Oye made the call in a policy analysis titled “The ₦11.2 Trillion Bodyguard: A Receivable in a Security Uniform,” following the disclosure in NNPC’s 2025 annual report that its receivables from the Federation rose from ₦8.840 trillion in 2024 to ₦11.201 trillion in December 2025. He cautioned, however, that the figure should not be interpreted as money spent on security during 2025, stressing that it represents outstanding receivables rather than expenditure incurred in the year under review.

According to Oye, NNPC broadly attributed the balance to advances to the Federation and costs associated with protecting oil and gas assets under a government-approved framework. However, he argued that the published accounts did not adequately distinguish physical security expenditure from advances to government and other financial obligations. He also noted that NNPC’s accounts recorded no energy-security expense for 2025, while an opening balance of ₦8.672 trillion was reconciled in September 2025 against royalties, taxes and dividends due to the Federation as of December 2024. The adjustment contributed to a reduction in total Federation receivables from ₦17.512 trillion to ₦11.201 trillion.

Oye said the reconciliation did not eliminate the need for greater transparency, arguing that public funds and petroleum-related obligations required detailed documentation. He called for a publicly accessible register separating physical oil and gas asset-security costs, supplier-of-last-resort obligations, petrol price-under-recovery claims and advances to the Federation. He proposed a detailed reconciliation showing the legal basis of each transaction, beneficiaries, supporting invoices, cash status, amounts offset against government obligations and measurable outcomes.

Beyond the receivables, Oye questioned the factors behind NNPC’s reported profit after tax of ₦7.183 trillion in 2025, up from ₦5.414 trillion in 2024, despite revenue falling by 24 per cent to ₦34.517 trillion and gross profit declining by about 20 per cent to ₦9.374 trillion. He pointed to an increase in other income from ₦3.392 trillion to ₦8.416 trillion and a reversal of impairment charges, urging the company to explain the contributions of operating activities, accounting adjustments and one-off items to its improved profit. While acknowledging NNPC’s reported peak crude and condensate production of 1.77 million barrels per day and its ₦5.8 trillion dividend declaration, he insisted that the achievements should be matched by verifiable disclosures.

Oye also raised concerns about pipeline maintenance reporting, noting that the specific pipeline maintenance cost line fell from ₦149.478 billion in 2024 to ₦13.813 billion in 2025, while other direct costs increased from ₦566.540 billion to ₦1.277 trillion. He said the figures did not prove that physical maintenance had declined by 90 per cent but made it difficult to determine whether costs had been reclassified, work postponed or efficiencies achieved. He urged NNPC to publish an asset-integrity scorecard detailing planned and actual maintenance, pipeline incidents, downtime, integrity spending and independent inspection results. Oye further called for transparency over forward-sale commitments and refinery performance, stressing that public announcements and reported financial gains must be backed by evidence of cash flows, settled obligations, operational delivery and tangible benefits to Nigerians.